Juvenile Assessment and Intervention System™ (JAIS)

The Juvenile Assessment and Intervention System™ (JAIS) is a supervision strategy model that weaves together a risk assessment and a strength and needs assessment. It is designed as a one-on-one interview with the youth, much of which focuses on the underlying motivation for illegal behavior. This process puts workers in a more proactive position in the relationship with the youth, builds rapport between the youth and worker, and better equips the agency to leverage the limited resources of staff time and treatment programs.

JAIS™ helps workers identify behaviors to expect and the important issues they will face during supervision. Focusing on the underlying reason(s) a youth is in trouble increases the chance for success, both in institutional and community settings.

JAIS provides information on the risk of both violence and general recidivism, priority needs of youth, and specific supervision strategies based on youth characteristics. It alerts officers/case managers to behaviors, attitudes, and problems they will likely encounter with each youth, allowing them to adopt a proactive stance with youth. JAIS provides concrete supervision strategies, and recommends programs and interventions most likely to produce success. The gender-specific risk and needs assessment that results in gender-responsive program and treatment strategies, developed by NCCD’s Center for Girls and Young Women, is also part of JAIS.

The gender-specific risk assessment used in the JAIS system is research-based and has been employed and validated widely. JAIS also provides the opportunity to reassess youth whenever needed. Agencies need to routinely evaluate the youth’s progress, and JAIS provides updated recommendations based on the most current information on a youth. As part of each JAIS implementation project, NCCD validates the risk instrument periodically and customizes the instrument for each agency to ensure it optimally classifies the youth population served.

For administrators and managers, JAIS provides the ability to easily monitor agency data and needs through data reports which inform the profile of youth served as well as indicate staff training or resource needs. JAIS can lead to more effective and efficient use of worker time, lessen a youth’s time on supervision, and reduce recidivism. All of this, in the long term, may produce smaller caseloads and more time for youth who most require services and supervision.